Hanwha Aerospace held a board meeting on 20th and announced that it has resolved to increase its capital by 3.6 trillion won. The goal is to secure overseas ground defense, shipbuilding, and maritime defense bases to take a further step forward as a global top-tier (Top Tier) defense, shipbuilding, and aerospace company.
This capital increase will be conducted through a public offering of unallocated shares after allocating shares to existing shareholders. The new share allocation date is April 24th, and the subscription for existing shareholders will take place for two days starting June 3rd. The public offering subscription period for unallocated shares is from June 9th to 10th.
Hanwha Aerospace announced plans to secure strategic overseas production bases in Europe, the Middle East, Australia, and the United States, aiming to grow into a corporation with consolidated sales of 70 trillion won and operating profit of 10 trillion won by 2035. To this end, it plans to use 1.6 trillion won of the funds secured from the capital increase for investments in establishing production facilities and equity investments for defense collaborations. The company explained that this is to proactively respond to the preference for cooperation models tied to local production investment rather than simple arms purchases in regions like Europe and the Middle East.
The company also plans to invest 900 billion won of the funds secured from the capital increase in domestic Modular Charge System (MCS) smart factory facilities and major defense business site equipment. Hanwha Aerospace has been developing modular charges optimized for the NATO standard 155mm shell since 2019 and achieved its first export to BAE Systems, a defense contractor in the United Kingdom, a NATO member country, in November 2023.
Hanwha Aerospace plans to invest 800 billion won to secure overseas maritime defense and shipbuilding production bases centered around the United States. The company intends to strengthen this further through additional overseas shipbuilding facility and equity investments, such as a recent strategic equity investment in Austal, which owns shipyards in the U.S. and Australia.
Hanwha Aerospace will invest 300 billion won in the development facility of engines for unmanned aerial vehicles to secure mass production capabilities. Based on its capabilities in developing aircraft engines and engine components, the company plans not only to develop its proprietary engines for unmanned aerial vehicles but also to expand cooperation with global unmanned aerial vehicle companies and enhance the independence of its aircraft engine technology.
Son Jae-il, CEO of Hanwha Aerospace, said, "Just as our continuous efforts for growth led to sustained profits and an increase in corporate value, we will achieve another quantum leap in corporate value by making strategic large-scale investments to take a step further as a global top-tier (Top Tier) defense, shipbuilding, and aerospace company."